WASHINGTON — Inflation in the United States ticked up in October, driven by costlier rents, used cars and air fares, a sign that price increases might be leveling off after having slowed in September to their lowest pace since 2021. Consumer prices rose 2.6% from a year earlier, the Labor...
Trump Says Musk, Vivek Will Form Outside Group to Advise White House on Government Efficiency
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday said Elon Musk and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency" — which is not, despite the name, a government agency. The acronym “DOGE” is a nod to Musk's favorite cryptocurrency, dogecoin. Trump said in a...
Fate of Clovis Trustee Race Still Up in the Air. So Are Clovis, Sanger School Bond Measures.
The lead in the Clovis Unified Area 2 trustee race has flipped, with Wilma Tom Hashimoto surging ahead of the former frontrunner, Molly DeFrank. Meanwhile, two Fresno-area school bond measures are looking more like winners than losers, based on the latest vote update released Tuesday afternoon by the Fresno County...
Richardson Widens Lead Over Bonakdar in Nail-Biting Race for Fresno City Council
In a nail-biting Fresno City Council race, the outcome for the District 6 seat remains uncertain as vote counting continues. Grassroots candidate and military veteran Nick Richardson currently leads attorney Roger Bonakdar by a narrow margin, underscoring the highly competitive nature of the election for the northeast Fresno seat. After...
What to Know About John Ratcliffe, Trump’s Pick for CIA Director
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he would appoint John Ratcliffe to serve as CIA director in his new administration. Here are five things to know about the Republican tapped to lead the U.S. government's premier spy agency: Stint No. 2 in the Trump Administration Ratcliffe served as...
Here Are the People Trump Has Picked for Key Positions So Far
President-elect Donald Trump is starting to fill key posts in his second administration, putting an emphasis so far on aides and allies who were his strongest backers during the 2024 campaign. Here's a look at whom he has selected so far. William McGinley Named White House Counsel Trump says William...
Waymo’s Robotaxis Now Open to Anyone Who Wants a Driverless Ride in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES - Waymo on Tuesday opened its robotaxi service to anyone who wants a ride around Los Angeles, marking another milestone in the evolution of self-driving car technology since the company began as a secret project at Google 15 years ago. The expansion comes eight months after Waymo began...
Fresno County Man Accused of Filing Fake Disability Claims in $300K Fraud Scheme
Leonel Hernandez, 51, of Parlier, faces serious charges in what prosecutors say was a years-long scheme to defraud the California Employment Development Department by submitting false disability claims using the names of deceased and active farm laborers, the Department of Justice reported in a Tuesday news release. The DOJ said...
Trump Nominates Fox News Host Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President-elect Donald Trump said Tuesday that he is nominating Fox News host and Army veteran Pete Hegseth to serve as his defense secretary. Hegseth deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and unsuccessfully ran for Senate in Minnesota in 2012 before joining Fox News. “With Pete at...
Economists Warn of Inflation and Debt Risks in Trump’s Second Term Plans
A second Trump administration could significantly reshape the U.S. economy through various policy proposals. The former president's plans include extending and expanding tax cuts, imposing tariffs on imports, and implementing strict immigration policies. Trump has proposed extending portions of the 2017 tax cuts and introducing new reductions, including exemptions for...